The Boy Who Lived

With apologies to JK Rolling, I've borrowed the title to the first chapter of her first book.  But then maybe she would forgive me if she realized how much a staple she's been in our lives.  Her books have been devoured so many times, that we had to replace some of them.  Several years ago, my boys wanted a Harry Potter birthday party.  Their older sisters put together what they hoped would be a fun Jeopardy game with different categories and different levels of difficulty.  It probably would have been fun, except that my boys thought even the hard questions were too easy, and the rest of the guests thought the easy ones too hard.  In other words, my kids LOVE her books.

Aaron 33 weeks gestation

But, I think her premise, that love is what saved Harry, is a true one.  It is no secret that we were told not to expect Aaron to live.  Even if he was born alive, we could not know if we got more than minutes with him in this life.  There is no "reason" why Aaron lived and continues to bless our lives.  But he is loved.  That's not to say those who have gone home early weren't loved.  But William used to say that he lived on love and mother's milk.  Well, that milk gave out a long time ago, and he's still thriving.  So I'd have to say it was the love.  Our love for him and his for us.  And the love of so many, many family and friends around the world.  So today, I say thank you.  Thank you for sharing your love that keeps him alive.

Rebekah Faith

Today has been a much better day than yesterday.  I worked through those emotions and thought I was able to move on.  Not happy about it, but going to deal with it.  Whatever "it" was.  Then, this afternoon, I got a phone call from a friend across the country.  Dear Susan has precious Rebekah (love how they spell her name!) who is 30 months old.  That's right!  2 1/2 years yesterday!  She called to tell me that Rebekah had similar findings, and it probably wasn't really an atrophy, or a wasting away of the brain, but something else called agenisis, which means that his brain hadn't ever developed fully and properly.  Well, duh, that's one thing we can all agree on with our little ones.  They're brains are definitely different than the rest of us.  I still like Jonathan's statement from about a year ago.  He said that Aaron has to have T18 because he's really this superhuman genius and it allows him to live with us normal mortals and be able to stand us!

So take that, Voldemort!  You still don't get to win.  Love will win out in the end.  Love does conquer all, even if we will someday have to say goodbye for a little while.  After all, it was love that brought our Savior to the Earth and allowed for the atonement.  So it will win.  That outcome is not in doubt.

4 weeks old

 And now if Christ had not come into the world,  . . .   there could have been no redemption.  And if Christ had not risen from the dead, or have broken the bands of death that the grave should have no victory, and that death should have no ^asting, there could have been no resurrection.  But there is a ^aresurrection, therefore the grave hath no victory, and the sting of ^bdeath is swallowed up in Christ.   He is the ^alight and the life of the world; yea, a light that is endless, that can never be darkened; yea, and also a life which is endless, that there can be no more death.

Mosiah 16:6-9